Task Force X AKA Team Arrow
by texaswookie
Summary: One shot idea of what might have happened if Lance had managed to arrest Team Arrow when Ra's was gunning for Oliver.


Arrow belongs to the CW and Green Arrow is DC Comics property.

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Iron Heights Prison

The sounds of grunting and groaning came echoing from a secluded cell. Inside the cell one could see the lone occupant of a well-muscled blonde man with scars crisscrossing his body and a few tattoos. His body was glistening with a light sheen of sweat as he worked out. Blue eyes remained focused on what he was doing. He was Oliver Queen former playboy royalty of Starling City. He had also been better known as the Vigilante, Hood, and Arrow.

He kept his back to the cell door, as he thought of the circumstances that had led to him being imprisoned in this cage. A nicer cage than many of the ones that he had been placed in before, but still a cage. It had all started with Malcom Merlyn brainwashing and then sending Thea to kill Sara. That had led to the interference of the League of Assassins in his city, demanding their idea of vengeance which had ended with killing someone every night that the killer wasn't brought to them. That problem with the League had ended with Oliver trying to do a trial by combat that would save Thea and the people of his city. He had survived the duel, losing in the process only to find himself the subject to some prophecy because he managed to live through getting stabbed with Ra's al Ghul-The Demon's sword. According to the prophecy, it was how the League chose who was to become the next leader.

Oliver had understandably to everyone except for the League had wanted nothing to do with becoming a member of the League much less leading them. In response, Ra's had turned the full force of the League to turn the city against him. It hadn't taken much since Lance had already been on the warpath after Laurel had finally told him that his youngest daughter was once again dead. Members of the League had taken to the streets dressed in copies of his own vigilante uniform, and had been killing among the criminal element. Leaving just enough around to spread the story of the vigilante going on a killing spree through the underworld. They seemed to forget that most of his kills had been high level criminals from the list, or the security for the upper level criminals. The number of basic drug, gun and other type of illegal dealers was actually amazingly small. Why they thought that he would change his position on those types of criminals was anyone's guess. It had come to a head when the team had been lead into a trap by the League for the police. The Arrow, Arsenal, and Black Canary had a choice. They could have torn through the cops and made their way back to their base and come up with a new move or they could have called the League and Oliver agreed to take his place in the League. Oliver hated having his options taken from him, so he had done the unexpected he had dropped his bow and pulled his hood back. The plan had been to cause a big scene in his surrendering that the others could escape. He hadn't anticipated Arsenal and Black Canary revealing themselves as Roy and Laurel.

After that they had all been tried. Oliver heard that each of them had been sent to a different prison. It hadn't taken Oliver long to make a name for himself as anyone that came at him with deadly intent usually ended up just as dead or with several broken bones depending on his mood. Roy and Laurel had been stubborn and hadn't even let him cut a deal to get them softer sentences. Digg and Felecity had followed one of his contingency plans and transferred all of the Arrow equipment out of the city and into storage at S.T.A.R Labs. They were to continue the work from there if they so chose. It was too hot in Starling to chance themselves right now. Particularly with the cops having them both under observation. He doubted even being a close friend of Ray Palmer was enough to keep them safe right now. Lance knew or suspected enough about their operation to grab the other two if he caught them.

More than once he had considered breaking out of the prison. He had studied the plans for the prison enough times that he knew that he could do it. He didn't even think that he would need any outside help to do it really. If he did get help, he figured he would have Barry deliver his gear. He was waiting though for the alternative to breaking out before that happened an alternative that he could feel staring at him calmly like they had been for the last 23 minutes.

He slowly turned around to stare back at the figure that had been watching him with the eyes of a predator. "Oliver." They greeted coolly.

"Waller." Oliver returned to her emotionlessly. "What took so long?" He asked idly. It had been eight months since his sentencing. He had expected the woman to leave him for three before she came in with a deal for him.

"I was assessing your team." The woman in business apparel returned with a shrug as she eyed him with eyes that betrayed no emotion. "I wanted to see if there was a way to push them to that final line and beyond. Well that and I wanted to make sure that you hadn't either made or smuggled an arrow.

"You wanted to see if you could get them to become killers. Killers like us." Oliver shot back, filling in the gaps for her.

"See Oliver, that's what I like about you, we understand each other." Waller noted looking somewhat approvingly at him. "With a brain like that, it's amazing with how poorly you did in school. You could have been one of the top businessmen in the world."

"Mandatory attendance is the thing that got me." Oliver glibly answered.

"It makes working with you simpler. If you weren't so independent you would be the perfect asset. You also won't have much choice on attendance."

"Yeah, that's not likely to change anytime soon. So what's the deal?"

"Straight to the point as always." Waller let a small trace of a smile grace her features. "Your team is proving stubborn, they have the potential, they just need either more time or training before they're the killer that you are."

"What's the count?" Oliver found himself question both want and not wanting the answer to that question answered.

"You're protégé has three kills, I can see why you chose him he has such potential. Thanks to your training he's even better." She added. "As for the girl, she just killed her first, accidently mind you, but it still happened."

Oliver grimaced as he recalled his own first kills. One done accidently and one done on purpose. Neither of them were things that he really liked to think about. "And that's why you came now. Your either tired of waiting or you're expecting me to jump into whatever deal you have if it'll spare Laurel having to go through any more of that than she has to."

"Laurel Lance, whether you love her like you once did, always has and always will be your weakness." Waller informed him calmly. "You never learned how to bottle up those emotions of yours. No matter how hard I tried to teach you. The best you eve seemed to do was to close your emotions off."

"The deal?"

"You, on Task Force X." She returned to him. "The program has expanded somewhat since I found you for the Hong Kong mission. Now 5 years of service gets you freedom from a life sentence which you and all of your friends have." She reminded him with a small trace of satisfaction over having something over his head. "You do this and you can start working off your sentence and get back to helping people as the Hood or whatever other name you want to go by. Who knows you might just be the first person to manage to survive the whole five years even." She mused to him. "It wouldn't exactly be the first time that you went and beat the odds now would it?" she demanded of the prisoner.

"Fine. but you already know the conditions that I want for my deal."

Waller actually looked smug at that, most likely because she had predicted the request. "You want to work off the debts of your friends before you start working off your own sentence." Oliver nodded back at her in acknowledgment. "I can work with that. It just means I get you all the longer. We'll see if you actually manage to get even one year off before the odds catch up with you." She said uncaringly.

"Open the door. She ordered." There was a moment of hesitation and then an alarm sounded and the cell door rolled to the side.

Oliver walked out cautiously his eyes alert and his body ready. He saw that there were several guards standing at the ready should he try anything. All of them armed with heavy duty assault rifles. Both of them ignored the guards. They were both very well aware of the fact that Oliver could kill Waller well before the guards could do anything if he so chose to.

"So what story did you give Lance?" Oliver asked curiously. "I wouldn't be surprised if he was seeing to it that some of my confrontations happened. The idea that I got out of a cell so much earlier than he planned has to be killing him. Even if you and I both know that I'm a far step away from being free. Lance won't see it that way."

Waller smirked. "Captain Lance is finding himself much too busy what with the increase in crime on all levels to concern himself over your whereabouts. Without having to fear the various vigilantes, the city is quickly falling apart. In some ways it's even worse than when Brickwell was making his power play against the city. Back then the others were still in the city to take up some of the slack that your absence created. The fact that your sister moved to Central means that Quentin Lance is now the only scapegoat left for why things are falling apart. Heaven forbid that they take responsibility for their own actions or inactions. Dr. Palmer is currently managing to limit the amount of time he spends in that suit of his."

Oliver nodded his acceptance. While he didn't like hearing that his city was suffering, the socialite in him couldn't help but feel slightly pleased with the heat that Lance was taking "You would think that the man could accept that he was a help to the system. . If the man hadn't been so intent on blaming him for everything that had happened then there was a chance that they could have worked together and bring Merlyn down. Instead Malcom was once again going to walk away with hardly any consequences for what he had done. The fact that Laurel was the one that had made the decision on whether or not to inform him didn't seem to matter to the man. He understood lashing out at people in grief but because he hadn't dealt with the situation they were now in the position that they were now in.

They boarded a transport vehicle and made their way to ARGUS HQ. There Oliver was given a moment to change into his Arrow gear. The very gear that he had been wearing when he had been arrested. That was nice, he wondered if there was any way for him to contact with the rest of the world. Knowing Waller, he wouldn't be surprised to know that the woman had techs go over every inch of the cloths looking for anything that he might use that she didn't approve of. There was a part of him that hoped that she managed to keep Diggle away from him. The former soldier had served a number of roles for him since they had met. The most important one would be that he had grounded him into his humanity. Working for Waller, that sort of thing had a chance of getting him killed. He needed to stop being the Arrow and go back to being the Hood.

Once he was back out he turned to the woman. "What's the mission?" He asked, as he raised the hood up over his head.

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Been reading Arrow fics lately and have yet to see this way of things going. Got this idea after watching the episode where Lance tries to trap them all and wondered what would happen if he succeeded. It then came to me that Waller would sweep them all up. Don't know if I'll continue this or not.


End file.
